Watch Dancing Co-Ed For Free

Wow! Such a good movie.

Undescribable Perfection

Simply A Masterpiece

It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

Which is how the studio PR Dept described Lana in her next few movies, significantly just after the male moviegoing public digested this one. As a B-grade comedy, it is simply that. As a Turner vehicle on the upward arc of her career it is something else. You were almost a decade into the Hayes Code and if you were looking for something a little higher octane than the typical Hollywood assembly line product, this was your stop. Turner, born in 1921, was a legitimate teen herself -- this was decades before Hollywood started casting "older for younger" -- and in short skirts, short shorts, and closeups, she steals the film at a felony level.

Lana Turner is a "Dancing Co-Ed" in this 1939 film also starring Ann Rutherford, Richard Carlson, Arte Shaw and his Orchestra and Monte Woolley. When one-half of the famous movie dancers, the Tobius', announces she's pregnant, the studio is talked into launching a Scarlett O'Hara type search in colleges to find a partner for the couple's next film. In order to make sure they cast the right person, a young actress at the studio, Patty Marlow (Turner) is sent to college with her friend from the studio, Eve Greeley (Ann Rutherford). However, the head of the college newspaper, Pug (Richard Carlson), thinks the contest is rigged. Patty quickly becomes Pug's assistant in uncovering a fix (becomes Holmes never suspected Watson of a crime). A complication arises when the two fall in love.It's hard to understand how people can consider Lana Turner a terrible and wooden actress, though it's possible these critics haven't seen her early films. Talk about a camera loving an actress, and talk about an actress with "star" written all over her beautiful face, Lana was it. Beautiful, fresh, energetic, with a warmth and a sweetness about her, Lana walked away with these early films, including "Slightly Dangerous," "These Glamor Girls" and many others. She did lose some of these qualities as the years went on, sadly, but here, she's wonderful. Ann Rutherford is excellent too, with an expressive, pretty face and a charm all her own. What could have been a routine film is really lifted by these actresses and the supporting cast. Highly recommended as a light '30s film that will leave you with a smile on your face.

A musical is about ready to be filmed for a fictional studio. The only problem is that the lady from the dance team to star in the film is pregnant and they need to find a replacement. Roscoe Karnes has an idea to stage a phony search in colleges across the country for the actress' replacement--though in reality, he has already chosen Lana Turner for the role. So, he enrolls Lana at a college and pretends to have an honest to goodness competition. Unfortunately, complications arise and the film becomes a nice little romantic farce.This is a rather old fashioned but fun old MGM musical that oddly stars Lana Turner. While I was surprised how well she could dance, you just normally don't think of her and dancing. Apparently it was originally to have been an Eleanor Powell film and it sure feels like one. Either could have done a fine job in this film, though seeing Turner in her more natural look of 1939 was very refreshing--with much less make-up and more natural looking hair. She was quite beautiful and more natural looking--making me wish that more co-eds had looked like this when I was in college. Uh, oh,...if my wife reads this, I am toast! By the way, while not a great film, it's a very good film and one even curmudgeons can enjoy.

I saw this movie several times, in another life (before WWII), with another title (Invitation To Dance)and in another world (Eastern Europe). Artie Shaw was already a star, but didn't fill the expectations, perhaps too bright to stay in rank with other jazzmen.I never found an opportunity to see it again, is not even available at Amazon. I caught it last week on a TCM program, although the advertised cast mentioned only the names of Lana Turner and...Thurston Hall! In my humble opinion, this movie may illustrate a duel between the two great clarinet wizards, Benny Goodman The King Of Swing and Artie Shaw the King of Clarinet.The Midwestern jazz and majorette parade imitates but hardly matches the motorcade introducing Hollywood HOTEL (S. Sylvan Simon ain't Busby Berkeley!) but the dance contest sequence is excellent, with a special mention for TRAFFIC JAM, both for the music and for the staging. That air is bathing in Count Basian atmosphere, like the LADY BE GOOD rendition of the same line-up - with Buddy Rich for added entertainment.And in his second (and last) full-length movie,SECOND CHORUS, Artie Shaw lined up his Concerto For Clarinet, a masterpiece largely shown, not for just two minutes, like SING, SING, SING, in HH. The plot was entertaining, with many good quips and dialog. Good mentions for Roscoe Kearns and Ann Rutherford.And Lana Turner is, at least this time, fresh and unsophisticated. A must for all the Artie Shaw and Swing Era fans, although the jazz sequences - except TRAFFIC JAM - are unreasonably shortened. Harry Carasso, Paris, France